Fender for cars.



No. 858,670- PATENTED JULY 2; 1907- W. 'J. REYNOLDS. j

FENDER FOR CARS.

APPLIOATION FILED 00123, 1905.

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No. 858,670. PATENTED JULY 2, 1907. w. J. REYNOLDS.

FENDER FOR CARS.

APPLICATION FILED 0013.23, 1906.

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- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM J. REYNOLDS, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO JOHN MURPHY AND ONE-THIRD TO JOHN A. ROGAN, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

FENDER FOR CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 2, 1907.

Application filed October 23, 1905. Serial No. 283,992.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM J. REYNOLDS, residing at Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, a citizen of the United States, have invented or discovered certain new and useful Improvements in Fenders for Cars, of which improvements the following is a specification.

The invention described herein relates to certain improvements in fenders for cars.

It is necessary that the fenders on cars should be so supported as to permit small objects,'such as stones, etc., to pass under the fender. Practice has shown that the fender should be held at a distance of about 5 or 6 inches from the rails. Practice has also shown that when held such a distance from the rails it is possible for the fender to be thrown up when striking an object, such as the body of a man, and pass over the same and so pinning or holding the body down, on the track as to render it certain that the car will pass over him.

The invention described herein has for its object a construction whereby when the fender strikes an object projecting a greater distance than the normal height of the fender from the rail, the fender will be automatically thrown down into or nearly into contact with the rail or roadway and held in such position, thus preventing all liability of the fender passing over or onto the body of a person on the track.

The invention is hereinafter more fully described claimed.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a plan view of my improved fender, showing it attached to the end of a car; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the construction shown in Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a view showing the fender folded up against the end of the car.

In the practice of my invention the platform of the fender is preferably formed of a tube or bar bent to U- shape, the arms 2 being of such a length that they will ex tend back to the brackets 3 to which they are pivotally connected by pins 4. These brackets may be of any suitable form or construction and secured in any suitable manner to the frame of the car. While the interior or body portion of the platform may be of any suitable construction, it is preferred to form it of a series of light steel strips 5, secured to cross bars 6 attached at their ends to the arms of the frame. Provision is made for yieldingly supporting the front end of the platform the desired distance from the rail, say five or six inches.

and

While any suitable construction may be employed for this purpose that shown is found to be convenient and consists of a chain 7, including as a part thereof a spring 8, and secured at one end to lugs 9 on the frame of the fender while the opposite ends are connected to hooks 10 secured to the frame of the car. A back piece is pivotally mounted on the platform of the fender so as to prevent anything caught on the fender from passing back over the same. This back-piece consists of a U-shaped frame 11 having light spring bars secured thereto. The ends of this frame are pivotally mounted as at 12 to the arms 2 of the platform, so as to permit of the back piece being folded onto the platform. When the fender is in operative position, the upper end of the back piece is supported by suitable means, such as hooks 13, pivotally connectedto the back piece and engaging suitable sockets or openings on the frame of the car.

While the spring support for the fender will permit of the front end of the latter being forced down onto the rails of the roadway when striking an object, the resilience of the spring will tend to throw whatever object drops on the platform off of the same, and might also tend to permit the end to rise up again when striking an object thus allowing the fender to pass over the same. In order to prevent this upward movement, means are employed for holding the fender down when depressed. A suitable form of means for this purpose consists of pawls 14 pivotally connected to the brackets 4 and engaging racks 15 on the arms 2 of the platform of the fender. As will be readily understood by reference to Fig. 2 these pawls or other holding means will prevent the platform of the fender from being drawn up from any position to which it might be depressed when striking an object, so that the fender will pass under the object and not over it and thus prevent in the case of a man being hit, any further injury being done to him.

I claim herein as my invention:

1. A car havingin combination therewith a fender having a pivotal connection to the car so arranged as to permit the fender being raised up to inoperative position in front of the car, and adjustable means yieldingly holding the fender a distance from the rails, and automatically preventing the upward movement of the fender.

2. A car having in combination therewith :1 fender having a pivotal connection to 'the car so arranged as to permit the fender being raised up to inoperative position in front of the car, adjustable means yielding'ly holding the tender at distance from the rails and automatically preventing the upward movement of the fender, and means for holding the fender in raised position 3 A car having in combination'therewith a tender having a pivotal connection to the front of the car so arranged as to permit the fender being raised to inoperative position in front of the car, a back piece pivotally connected to the fender, means yieldingly supporting the fender a distance from the rails, means for preventing upward movement of the fender, and means for holding the back piece in ODGI'Qti B position.

4. The combination with a car, of a fender comprising 10 a platform pivotally connected to the car and a hackpiece pivotally connected to the platform, means yieldingly supporting the platform a distance from the rails, and means 1'01 automatically preventing ihc upward move ment of. the platform.

111 testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

\VIllLlAhT J. REYNOLDS.

Witnesses CHARLES BARNETT, FnmnA E. \VULFF. 

